Cultural Heritage Landscapes

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Criteria for Identification

A Cultural Heritage Landscape accounts for an array of heritage elements that work together to create a whole. It can encompass buildings, structures, landforms, plantings, and viewscapes. The Ontario Provincial Policy Statements under the Planning Act describes it as "a defined geographical area of heritage significance which has been modified by human activities. Such an area is valued by the community, and is of significance to the understanding of the history of a people or place." It differs from the standard example of the designation of a heritage house in that the focus is not on a specific structure or elements but on how a group of elements work together to represent the heritage of an area or property.

Rockside Cultural Heritage Landscape Study

One of the Town's earliest settled areas, Rockside is located in the southwest corner of the former Township of Caledon, around Olde Base Line and Shaw's Creek Road. It was named Rockside by its earliest settlers, a testament to the difficult rocky lands that they had received as a land grant. Nonetheless the 'Rockside Pioneers', under the leadership of John MacDonald, persevered as a community, with the abundance of local dolostone giving rise to the area's characteristic stone farmhouses and the stone fences (leveled with cedar shingles) such as the Patullo fence (Mississauga Road at Grange Sideroad). One of the earliest settled of the 'Rockside' properties, first claimed by MacDonald, is located at the corner of Olde Base Line Road and Winston Churchill Road. It is said that 'Rebel Cave', located in the vicinity of Creditview Road, served as a hiding place for William Lyon Mackenzie and his supporters. A study was commissioned by the Town in 2003 to determine whether the area meets the established criteria for potential designation as a Cultural Heritage Landscape, and in 2006 it was deemed a Cultural Heritage Landscape Policy Area under the Town's Official Plan.

Cultural Heritage Landscapes Inventory

In 2009, the Town was surveyed to identify any Cultural Heritage Landscapes that exist within its boundaries, using the 'Criteria for the Identification of Cultural Heritage landscapes' developed in 2003 for that purpose. The inventory work was done in accordance with Section 3.2.3.4.1 of the Town of Caledon Official Plan that states, in part, "that an inventory of candidate cultural heritage landscapes shall be prepared by the Town and maintained through the Heritage Resource Office." The survey was conducted in two phases over several years, with Phase 1 focusing on the northwestern portion of the Town, and Phase 2 investigating the other sections of the Town.

With the completion of this Inventory, the Town of Caledon has a strong tool for planning and managing the preservation of the heritage character of its unique places.